Improvement in railroad-tickets



UNrrEn STATES PATENT H. E. ALEXANDER, or NEW YORK, N. Y.

IMPROVEMENT IN RAILROAD-TICKETS.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 85,351, dated December 29, 1868.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, H. E. ALEXANDER, of the city, county, and State of New York, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Railroad-Tickets; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description thereof, which will enable. others skilled in the art to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming part of this specification.

This invention relates to improvements in tickets for use upon railroads, steamboats, and conveyances for passengers,but is particularly adapted for street-cars or other vehicles where a iixed rate of fareV is to be collected, the object of which is to prevent fraud or embezzlement on the part of those who collect the fare.

It consists in the provision of tickets by the company in packages suitably marked, numbered, and canceled, to prevent being used over by the conductors, the said tickets being firmly united in the said packages through the stub portions in amounts sufiicient for one trip each way, to be charged to the conductors, who are required to tear oii' and hand one ticket to each person from whom he receives a fare, and to account to the company for as many fares as there are tickets separated from the stubs, which are to be handed in by him on settlement.

If the conductor is observed to fail to give the tickets to the passengers, and does not account for more tickets than are torn off, conclusive evidence of embezzlement will thereby be established.

Figure l represents a face view of a package of tickets for the up-trip. Fig. 2 represents the same for the down-trip. a section through apackage,taken on the line of Fig. 1. Figs. 4 and 5 represent back views of the same.

Similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts.

I propose to provide the tickets in packages of suitable numbers, firmly riveted together at lone end, and punctured on the line a', for convenience` of separation, with longitudinal divisions formed by dividing-lines c, which may be subdivided transversely, as follows: The division b into the, number corresponding Fig. 3 representswith the number of trips to be made in a day, which I have represented in the drawings at twelve; the division d e f into a number corresponding with the days of a month 5 and the division g into a number corresponding with the months in a year; in which spaces the respective numbers and names of the months are to be written or printed, as represented in the drawings.

To distinguish the tickets for one direction from those of the other, they may be arranged in the reversed orders represented in Figs. l and 2. i

The package so prepared and canceled, at the office or by the agent-by puncturing through the division b, the number corresponding to the number of the trip; the divisions d c f, corresponding to the day ofthe month; and through the division g, corresponding to the month in which it is to be used-may be delivered to the conductor and charged to him. He is then required to tear oft' a ticket for each person from whom he receivesa fare, and return the package, together with the fares collected, to the office, where he will be credited with the ticketsnot separated om the pack, and charged with the diierence in money. l

. By this plan his neglect to tear off and present a ticket as required would. attract the attention of the passenger, as it would be an evidence of his intention to defraud, and he would thereby be liable to be reported to the superior officer.

VTo facilitate the co-operation of the public, notices may be conspicuously posted in the cars, or other places, requesting them to demand their tickets, and the latter may have on their backs a request for them to destroy them.

The duties of a detective agent will by this plan be greatly simplied, as he will only be required to observe if the tickets are torn oft', instead of keeping an exact accoimt `of the passengers getting on and off.

The cancellation of the packages as described prevents the use of them by the conductors except on the trip, day, and month indicated by the cancellation, and also by the public except on the corresponding day and trip of the next year, and that maybe preeach year, as is Well understood. the purpose herein described.

Having thus described my invention, I The above speoio'ation of my invention claim as new and desire to secure by Letters signed by me this 17th day of September, 1868.

vented by a change inthe colors ofthe tickets' numbers, and names, substantially as and for Patent* H. E. ALEXANDER.

The improved railroad or other tickets, riv- Witnesses: eted or otherwise secured in packages, and FRANK BLOGKLEY,

provided with the divisions, subdivisions, ALEX. F. ROBERTS. 

